Gay's the Word bookshop is delighted to host this event celebrating publication of The Palace of Curiosities, the incredible début novel from Rosie Garland (aka the performer Rosie Lugosi).

Gay's The Word,

66 Marchmont Street, London WC1N 1AB, UK

Thursday, 9 May 2013

19:00 until 21:00

Event Entry £2 - complimentary refreshments - please RSVP here on Facebook.

"The Palace of Curiosities is a jewel-box of a novel, with page after page, scene after scene, layer after layer of treats and surprises. Garland is a real literary talent."

- Sarah Waters

Set in Victorian London, this luminous and bewitching debut is a profound love story lurking in the boundaries of what is perceived as human...

"Gentlemen and Ladies! How happy I am to welcome you to this Palace of Curiosities on such an auspicious occasion. What luck! What serendipity! For tonight we have mirth! Wit! And Jollity! See The Lion-Faced Woman and The Marsyas of Modern Times, Star Attractions at Professor Arroner's Astonishing Marvels!"

Waterstones Deansgate celebrates World Book Night.

Date – 23rd April 2013

Venue – Waterstones, 91-93 Deansgate, Manchester, M3 2BW

Time - 6-8pm

Rosie Garland will be reading from her latest poetry collection, 'Everything Must Go' as well as her debut novel, 'The Palace of Curiosities'. Copies of both are available on the night!

With refreshments, music, and poetry from Carcanet poets too.

Waterstones Manchester Deansgate

email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

landline: 0161 837 3000

Follow us on Twitter @waterstonesMCR

http://www.worldbooknight.org/

World Book Night is a celebration of reading and books which sees tens of thousands of passionate volunteers gift specially chosen and printed WBN books in their communities to share their love of reading.

BAD LANGUAGE RETURNS TO THE CASTLE HOTEL WITH HEADLINER ROSIE GARLAND.

The Castle Hotel, 66 Oldham St, Manchester M4 1LE

Wednesday, 24 April 2013

19:30 until 22:30

Bad Language has been called, 'a realm of uncertainty and surprise' (The Mancunion, 2013).

Rosie Garland has always been a cuckoo in the nest.

She is an eclectic writer and performer, ranging from singing with post-punk gothic band The March Violets, through touring with the Subversive Stitch exhibition in the 90s to her alter-ego Rosie Lugosi the Vampire Queen, cabaret chanteuse and mistress of ceremonies. She has published five solo collections of poetry and her award-winning short stories, poems and essays have been widely anthologized.

Most recently she won the inaugural Mslexia Novel Competition and her debut novel The Palace of Curiosities (HarperCollins) is out now.

'The Palace of Curiosities is a jewel-box of a novel, with page after page, scene after scene, layer after layer of treats and surprises. Garland is a real literary talent: definitely an author to watch.' Sarah Waters

'Reminds me of Angela Carter' Jenni Murray

'Rosie Garland has conjured a dream-like magical realist debut about Victorian circus freaks ... an alternately brutal and beautiful story about love and belonging in a vividly conveyed underworld, rich in carny phantasmagoria and lyrical romance' METRO

http://www.rosiegarland.com/books/fiction.html

We also have our monthly open mic which will open for submissions on the 5th April. If you would like a slot, please e-mail us from the 5th April onwards to book your place.

Slots are FOUR MINUTES length, and we reserve a number of spaces for first time performers at Bad Language. Simply e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to book your place.

Rosie Garland's extraordinary tale is a story of superstition and devotion in the time of the Black Death and will bewitch both new readers and fans of her much-loved debut, The Palace of Curiosities. It was nominated for the Green Carnation Prize, 2014.

'Vixen' is a fine example of how to marry a stunning cover to a book's contents. The cover features original artwork by Lindsay Carr http://www.littlerobot.org.uk/ and was designed by Alexandra Allden at Borough Press.

About the novel - Vixen

Devon, 1349. In Brauntone, where seagulls screech across the fields and the wind has a mind to change, Father Thomas arrives as the new priest. Determined to impress his congregation, he quells fears of the coming pestilence with promises of protection.
For Anne, the priest's arrival is an opportunity that at sixteen, she feels all too ready for. Convinced a grand fate awaits, she moves in as Thomas's housekeeper, though hopeful of something more. But his home is a place without love or kindness. So when a strange, mute Maid is discovered, washed up in the marshes, and taken in, Anne is grateful for the company. Their friendship is to give Anne the chance of a happiness she thought she'd never know.
But soon the plague strikes Brauntone, spreading panic. And as the villagers' fear turns to anger, Thomas must sacrifice anything to restore their faith in him.

Reviews

A great review in Diva magazine (August 2014)
"Poetic, surprising and ultimately deeply moving, Vixen will have you hooked faster than it takes to drink a jug of ale and - unlike ale - it will stay with you long after you've reached the final page."

Praise for The Palace of Curiosities:
'Garland's lush prose is always a pleasure' - The Guardian
'An alternately brutal and beautiful story about love and belonging in a vividly conveyed underworld, rich in carny phantasmagoria and lyrical romance' METRO
'Bewitching' Good Housekeeping
'A jewel-box of a novel ... Garland is a real literary talent: definitely an author to watch' Sarah Waters
'Reminds me of Angela Carter' Jenni Murray
"Fabulously strange historical debut... a romp filled with sheer, demented fun." Suzi Feay

Link to order Vixen -
https://www.harpercollins.co.uk/9780007492800/vixen

Winner of the Mslexia Novel Competition 2012, longlisted for The Desmond Elliott Prize 2013 and the Polari First Prize for First Book 2014. It was also winner of the Cooperative Bank 'Loved By You' LGBT Book of the Year 2013.

"Gentlemen and Ladies! You have come on a very special evening. How happy I am to welcome you to this Palace of Curiosities on such an auspicious occasion. What luck! What serendipity! For tonight we have mirth! Wit! And Jollity! We humbly offer for your discernment Wonder Unparalleled, Incredible Feats of Daring. Step inside for The Wonders of the Age! See The Lion-Faced Woman and The Marsyas of Modern Times, Star Attractions at Professor Arroner's Astonishing Marvels!"

The Palace of Curiosities: UK / Commonwealth all formats available (hardback, paperback, audio, ebook)

Read reviews here:

"Fabulously strange historical debut... a romp filled with sheer demented fun." - Suzi Feay

'The Palace of Curiosities is a jewel-box of a novel, with page after page, scene after scene, layer after layer of treats and surprises. Garland is a real literary talent: definitely an author to watch.' – Sarah Waters

'Garland's lush prose is always a pleasure.' – The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/apr/06/palace-of-curiosities-review

'Garland has woven an alternately brutal and beautiful story about love and belonging in a vividly conveyed underworld, rich in carny phantasmagoria and lyrical romance.' – The Metro
http://metro.co.uk/2013/03/27/3560891-3560891/

'The bewitching Palace of Curiosities will appeal to fans of Angela Carter & magic realism alike.' - Good Housekeeping

'Fantastic... It's an intriguing tale in which the narrative deftly alternates between the two lead characters, drawing readers ever deeper into a world that is horrifying and dazzling but seems every bit as real as our own.' – Creative Tourist
https://www.creativetourist.com/articles/reading-and-writing/liverpool/in-the-land-of-publishing-persistence-is-king-rosie-garland-gets-a-break/

'Garland has produced a fascinating and delightful book. A cross between Philip Pullman and Angela Carter, she takes us on an evocative and wonderful journey full of magical delights and stunning set pieces... she made me gasp with the audacity of her ideas and smile with the light beauty of her prose.' - GScene
https://issuu.com/gscene/docs/gscene_jun13?e=1754316/5558671

'The characters are fascinating, and Victorian London is vividly captured, and of course the language sparkles like sharp-cut jewels.' – Elizabeth Baines
http://elizabethbaines.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/rosie-garlands-launch-of-palace-of.html?spref=fb

'A stunning piece of work, with strong themes of identity, acceptance of the Other, and a touchingly unique love story between two fabulous main characters. I wouldn't be surprised if this is the benchmark against which the rest of this year's debuts will have to measure themselves.' – GoodReads
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/454021227

About the novel

Before Eve is born, her mother goes to the circus. She buys a penny twist of coloured sugar and perches on the edge of her seat to watch the heart-stopping main attraction: a lion, billed as a monster from the savage heart of Africa, forged in the heat of a merciless sun. Mama swears she hears the lion sigh, just before it leaps... and nine months later when Eve is born, the story goes, she doesn't cry – she meows and licks her paws.
When Abel is pulled from the stinking Thames, the mudlarks are sure he is long dead. As they search his pockets to divvy up the treasure, his eyes crack open and he coughs up a stream of black water. But how has he survived a week in that thick stew of human waste?
Cast out by Victorian society, Eve and Abel find succour from an unlikely source. They soar to fame as The Lion Faced Girl and The Flayed Man, star performers in Professor Josiah Arroner's Palace of Curiosities.
Set in 1850s London, this is the story of Eve and Abel; both freaks of nature searching for escape. It explores what it's like to be different, and traces their struggle for self-discovery on the boundaries of what is perceived as human.

The Night Brother

From the author of The Palace of Curiosities and Vixen comes a dazzling and provocative new novel of adventure, mystery and belonging. The Night Brother shifts tantalisingly between day and night, exploring questions of identity, sexual equality and how well we know ourselves. Perfect for fans of Angela Carter, Sarah Waters, Erin Morgenstern.
Praise from Stella Duffy - "A tumble of poetry, desire and passion... intriguing and delicious."

Rich are the delights of late nineteenth-century Manchester for young siblings Edie and Gnome. They bicker, banter, shout and scream their way through the city’s streets, embracing its charms and dangers. But as the pair mature, it is Gnome who revels in the night-time, while Edie is confined to the day. She wakes exhausted each morning, unable to quell a sickening sense of unease, and confused at living a half-life.
Reaching the cusp of adulthood, Edie’s confusion turns to resentment and she is determined to distance herself from Gnome once and for all. But can she ever be free from someone who knows her better than she knows herself?
Exploring the furthest limits of sexual and gender fluidity, this is a story about the vital importance of being honest with yourself. Every part of yourself. After all, no-one likes to be kept in the dark.

Available in all formats - hardback, paperback, audio, ebook.

The first reviews have come in for ‘The Night Brother’ – and they’re good. Wow!

"Echoes of Angela Carter's more fantastical fiction reverberate through this exhuberant tale... Garland's narrative is enjoyably energetic." - Nick Rennison, The Sunday Times 18.6.2017

"A rich and ambitious tale set in late Victorian Manchester... Garland's prose is a delight: playful and exhuberant. There are shades of Angela Carter in the mad world she creates... Full marks for style.' - Toni Senior, The Times 3.6.2017

Thank you to Happy Meerkat and Little Bookness Lane for loving my words.

“Once again I find myself lost in the reverie of Rosie Garland’s exquisite writing. Extraordinarily enchanting, The Night Brother’s emotional bounty caresses each page… Embracing the intimacies and complexities of the heart and soul, The Night Brother doesn’t feel like a story, but a delectable gift. All that remains is for me to offer a thunderous round of applause for what is simply an expressive, breath-taking wonder.”
Little Bookness Lane – read the full text here
https://littlebooknesslane.wordpress.com/2017/05/25/book-review-the-night-brother-by-rosie-garland/

“The Night Brother is a wonderful historical fiction novel with an amazing and intriguing twist… From the moment I read the first page I was hooked… A real exciting and also thought-provoking page-turner that I can really recommend.”
Happy Meerkat – read the full text here
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1888724819